The purpose of this research is to explore the nature of social support networks at different points in the life course, with particular emphasis on the elderly. Specifically, we are concerned with the relationship between well-being in older people and their opportunities to give and receive social support, the extent to which such needs and opportunities differ but persist at different points in the life course, and the distinctive forms social support networks may assume within families, between generations, and within major social/demographic groups. The original design has been modified to reflect pretest results. Personal interviews with a random sample of people 50 and older will be conducted and in-depth social support data will be collected. In addition, personal interviews with network members of people 70 and older will be conducted including interviews with spouse, and three generation family members whenever possible. This research design has several unusual features. It offers indepth information on people 50 years of age and older and offers complementary information from network members. The interview with network members allows us to study the patterns of intra-familial social support across three generations and also to assess the veridicality of response of persons over 70. In sum, this research should provide a most extensive data base on social support systems across the adult years, and especially among the elderly.